Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 241,520 in January, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide. The statewide annualized sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2023 if sales maintained the January pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales. January’s sales pace was up 0.4 percent monthly from a revised 240,630 in December and down 45.7 percent from a year ago, when a revised 444,400 homes were sold on an annualized basis.
“Thanks to slightly waning interest rates and tempering home prices, California’s housing market kicked off the new year with another step up and continued to improve in January as buyers gained more confidence in purchasing a home and the affordability outlook improving slightly,” said C.A.R. President Jennifer Branchini, a Bay Area REALTOR®. “While the monthly sales gains have been nominal over the past two months, the market is moving in the right direction, and more gradual improvements could be coming in the months ahead as the market moves into the spring homebuying season in a few weeks.”
California’s median home price receded in January to $751,330, down 3.0 percent from the $774,850 recorded in December, which was the fifth straight monthly decline. January’s price also was lower on a year-over-year basis for the third consecutive month, declining 1.9 percent from the $766,250 recorded last January.
“Job layoffs in recent months, primarily in the tech sector, have contributed to a decline in both sales and prices in higher-priced housing markets, particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Jordan Levine. “With home prices expected to remain soft and the mix of sales continuing to shift toward less expensive housing units throughout the rest of 2023, the market will see more downward price adjustments in the next few months.”
